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What is the Investors in People framework?

Investors in People is a continuous improvement framework and a benchmark for any well-run organisation. Launched in May 2009, the new choices approach is tailored to your individual organisation’s business needs. The new choices approach offers a more flexible way for your organisation to work with the framework. The framework itself has been extended beyond the Standard to give your organisation the opportunity to explore more in depth, the areas that are most important to you. As every organisation has different needs and requirements, your adviser and assessor will work with you to identify the most relevant parts of the framework for your organisation and its particular needs. The framework is successfully used in more than 35,000 organisations from all sizes and sectors in 70 countries. There are three main principals of the framework - Plan, Do, Review Plan – Developing strategies to improve the performance of your organisation Do – Taking action to improve the performance of your organisation Review – Evaluating the impact on the performance of your organisation

IQC-marketing-additional recognition information 2

Additional Recognition Every organisation needs to meet the 39 evidence requirements in the Standard (or 37 evidence requirements if they have no formal representative groups in place) to become or remain recognised as an Investor in People organisation. How your organisation meets these requirements can be tailored to your organisation’s individual business needs – whether this is increasing profitability, managing difficult changes or retaining key talent. Your organisation can achieve additional recognition by working beyond the Investors in People Standard. Your choice is part of the framework that builds on the principals of the Standard, going further and deeper where you need it most. This more focused approach is designed to help you reap the rewards of working at your own pace. Whether you go beyond the Standard, or stay within it, this new approach to the framework strengthens your organisation’s strategic planning and performance and provides you with a vision for continuous measurable improvement. Additional recognition can be achieved as follows:

An Organisation meeting the Standard plus a minimum of 26 additional evidence requirements drawn from the ‘Your Choice’ section of the Framework will be recognised as Investors in People Bronze

An Organisation meeting the Standard plus a minimum of 76 additional evidence requirements drawn from the ‘Your Choice’ section of the Framework will be recognised as Investors in People Silver

An Organisation meeting the Standard plus a minimum of 126 additional evidence requirements drawn from the ‘Your Choice’ section of the Framework will be recognised as Investors in People Gold

To find out more about the framework and how it might apply to your business issues, Investors in People have created a Business Issue Scoping Tool which is available at www.investorsinpeople.com/tools-and-success-stories/tools-and-resources. It covers a multitude of issues including managing change, increasing efficiency, maximising profitability and strategic leadership, among others. Using the interactive tools can used a stepping stone for your business to get started on the Investors in People journey.

“By knitting together both plans (the business plan and HR plan), we ensured we would be prepared for major change in the future. We knew this approach was successful when we were faced with the fourfold expansion of our manufacturing facility. Such was our readiness for this degree of change that we were able to complete the entire process in only seven months. Our programme of change management was so successful that the project was highly commended for a training award”

Julie Dixon, HR and Facilities Manager, Thermo Fisher Scientific

"Groundwork South Tyneside & Newcastle's journey towards gaining Investors in People has empowered an already close knit team to work in an even more coordinated manner. Additionally, it helped us to formalise practices, keeping it as non-technical and light hearted as possible. The whole team agrees that it has promoted the Trust's ongoing growth and development. Every member of staff contributed to this award and are proud to be recipients of it.”

Helénè Turner, Funding and HR Manager, Groundwork South Tyneside & Newcastle

“Working with the Investors in People framework and attaining the Standard will help significantly in developing Beamish further. We have already seen changes in the approaches to peoplemanagement and leadership within the museum, as well as improved and heightened communication. We aim to continue to develop the Museum through investing further in our staff and volunteers using the Investors in People Standard as a framework for initiating and driving change”. Richard Evans, Director, Beamish Museum

“There is no doubt that the Investors in People Standard has created a real buzz here. Our people are committed to continuous improvement, they’re enthusiastic, supportive and importantly they’re happy to work here. Their impact on our business performance and productivity has been simply outstanding.”

Gordon Arkley, Managing Director, Faraday Printed Circuits